CN216750083U - Battery cell, battery and power consumption device - Google Patents

Abstract

The application provides a battery monomer, battery and power consumption device. The battery cell comprises an electrode assembly, a shell and two end covers, wherein the shell is provided with two openings which are oppositely arranged in a first direction, the shell comprises a shell wall which is arranged in a surrounding mode along the circumferential direction and a separating part which is arranged in the shell wall, an inner cavity of the shell is separated into a first cavity and a second cavity which are mutually independent in a second direction by the separating part, the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction, the first cavity is used for containing the electrode assembly, the second cavity forms a flow channel of cooling liquid, and the volume of the first cavity is larger than that of the second cavity. The two end covers are correspondingly arranged at the two openings, and the end covers are connected with the shell wall in a sealing mode and are connected with the end faces of the separating parts in a sealing mode. The cooling efficiency of the battery monomer of this application obtains improving.

Description

Battery cell, battery and power consumption device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of battery technologies, and in particular, to a battery cell, a battery, and an electric device.

Background

With the rapid development of power batteries, the energy density of the power batteries is continuously increased, and the increase of the energy density increases the heat productivity of the power batteries, so how to improve the cooling efficiency of the batteries is a problem to be paid attention.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

In view of the above problems, the present application provides a battery cell, a battery, and an electric device to improve cooling efficiency of the battery.

In a first aspect, the present application provides a battery cell, which includes an electrode assembly, a case, and two end caps, wherein the case has two openings disposed opposite to each other in a first direction, the case includes a case wall disposed to surround in a circumferential direction, and a partition portion disposed in the case wall, the partition portion partitions an inner cavity of the case into a first cavity and a second cavity independent from each other in a second direction, the second direction is perpendicular to the first direction, the first cavity is used to accommodate the electrode assembly, the second cavity forms a flow channel for a cooling liquid, and a volume of the first cavity is greater than a volume of the second cavity. The two end covers are correspondingly arranged at the two openings, and the end covers are connected with the shell wall in a sealing mode and are connected with the end faces of the separating parts in a sealing mode.

In the technical scheme of this application, separate the inner chamber of casing for mutually independent first chamber and second chamber through the partition part, wherein first chamber is used for holding electrode subassembly, and the second chamber is used for holding the coolant liquid, and the heat that first chamber produced just can transmit the coolant liquid of second chamber and be taken away by the coolant liquid through the partition part like this, and heat transfer route is simple, and heat transfer efficiency is high, has improved the cooling efficiency of battery. And the first chamber and the second chamber of this application embodiment all seal through the end cover for the free integrated level of battery is high, and the assembly is simple.

In some embodiments, the end cap is integrally formed, the end cap is welded to the housing wall, and the end cap is sealingly connected to the end face of the partition by laser penetration welding. The end cover is integrally formed, so that when the end cover is connected with the shell, the end cover is welded with the shell wall of the shell, and the end cover is welded with the end face of the separation part in a laser penetration welding mode to realize the sealing connection between the end cover and the end face of the separation part, so that the assembly process can be simplified by integrally forming the end cover.

In some embodiments, the end cap includes a first end cap sub-body for closing the first cavity and a second end cap sub-body for closing the second cavity, the first end cap sub-body is welded to the end face of the first cavity, the second end cap sub-body is welded to the end face of the second cavity, and the first end cap sub-body, the second end cap sub-body and the partition portion are connected by adhesive glue. The end cover is split into an upper part and a lower part, the two parts and the separating part are sealed again after the two parts are respectively welded with the end face of the shell, and the sealing reliability between the first cavity and the second cavity can be further ensured.

In some embodiments, the shell wall includes two first sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite to the third direction and two second sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite to the second direction, the third direction is perpendicular to the second direction and the first direction, the second sidewalls have an area smaller than that of the first sidewalls, and the partition is parallel to the second sidewalls. The partition part is parallel to the second side wall so that the cooling liquid of the second cavity covers the second side wall, and therefore when the large faces of the plurality of battery monomers are arranged side by side, the second cavity is located at the same end, and uniform conveying of the cooling liquid of the second cavities of the plurality of battery monomers is facilitated. And the arrangement is such that the area of the partition between the first chamber and the second chamber is smaller, and the isolation between the two chambers is easier to achieve.

In some embodiments, the thickness of the partition is greater than the thickness of the housing wall. The thickness of the partition part is larger than that of the shell wall, so that the connecting area between the partition part and the end cover can be increased, and the first cavity and the second cavity are isolated.

In some embodiments, the housing includes two partitions disposed in the wall of the housing and disposed in parallel, the two partitions dividing the inner cavity of the housing into a first cavity and two second cavities disposed on both sides of the first cavity, the first and second cavities being independent of each other. The arrangement is such that the coolant flows through both sides of the first cavity for housing the electrode assembly 21, and the cooling efficiency can be further improved.

In some embodiments, the two end caps include a first end cap and a second end cap, the first end cap is provided with a cooling liquid input pipe for inputting the cooling liquid into the second cavity, and the second end cap is provided with a cooling liquid output pipe for outputting the cooling liquid from the second cavity. The cooling liquid input pipe and the cooling liquid output pipe are respectively arranged on the two end covers to realize the circulating flow of the cooling liquid in the second cavity, and the cooling effect is improved.

In some embodiments, the coolant input tube and/or the coolant output tube is an insulated tube. The cooling liquid input pipe and the cooling liquid output pipe of each battery are made of insulating materials, so that the condition that the shells of a plurality of battery monomers form an equipotential body through a cooling pipeline is avoided, and the problem of electrolytic corrosion is further avoided.

In some embodiments, the battery cell further includes two poles respectively disposed on the two end caps, and the electrode assembly includes a main body portion and two tabs of opposite polarities protruding from the main body portion, the two tabs respectively protruding toward the two openings and electrically connected to the corresponding poles. Two utmost point posts set up respectively at the free both ends of battery, can make things convenient for the connection between a plurality of battery monomer.

In some embodiments, the battery cell further includes two terminals disposed on one of the two end caps, and the electrode assembly includes a main body and two tabs of opposite polarities extending from the main body to one side of the two terminals, and the two tabs are electrically connected to the two terminals. Two utmost point posts all set up at the free same end of battery, so the free other sides of battery all can set up side by side each other, and the free one end opposite with setting up utmost point post of battery can directly form the contact surface with the box, and then make things convenient for arranging of a plurality of battery monomer in the box.

In some embodiments, the housing is integrally formed. The case is integrally formed, which simplifies the manufacturing process of the battery 20.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a battery including the above battery cell.

In some embodiments, the battery includes at least two battery cells arranged side by side, a coolant input main pipe and a coolant output main pipe, two ends of the second cavity of the at least two battery cells are respectively in fluid communication with the coolant input main pipe and the coolant output main pipe, and the coolant input main pipe and/or the coolant output main pipe are/is an insulating pipe. The cooling liquid input main pipe and the cooling liquid output main pipe are made of insulating materials, so that the case bodies of the plurality of batteries are prevented from forming an equipotential body through cooling pipelines.

In a third aspect, the present application provides an electric device comprising the above battery for providing electric energy.

The foregoing description is only an overview of the technical solutions of the present application, and the present application can be implemented according to the content of the description in order to make the technical means of the present application more clearly understood, and the following detailed description of the present application is given in order to make the above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present application more clearly understandable.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments of the present application will be briefly described below, and it is obvious that the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious for a person skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on the drawings without any creative effort.

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a vehicle according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an exploded schematic view of a battery according to some embodiments of the present application;

fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a battery cell according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

fig. 4 is an exploded view of a battery cell according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a housing according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a side view schematic of the housing of some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 7 is an exploded view of a battery cell according to other embodiments of the present application;

fig. 8 is an exploded view of a battery cell according to further embodiments of the present application;

fig. 9 is an exploded view of a battery cell according to some embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a side view of a battery according to some embodiments of the present application;

fig. 11 is a step diagram of a method of manufacturing a battery cell according to some embodiments of the present application;

in the drawings, the drawings are not necessarily to scale.

Description of the labeling:

1000. a vehicle;

100. a battery 200, a controller 300, a motor;

10. a box body 11, a first part 12 and a second part;

20. the battery comprises a battery cell 21, an electrode assembly 211, a main body part 212, tabs 22, a shell 22a, a first cavity 22b, a second cavity 221, a shell wall 2211, a first side wall 2212, a second side wall 222, a separating part 23, an end cover 231, a first end cover split body 232, a second end cover split body 24, a pole 25, a cooling liquid input pipe 26, a cooling liquid output pipe 27 and a liquid injection hole;

30. a coolant input manifold;

40. a coolant output manifold;

x, first direction, Z, second direction, Y, third direction.

Detailed Description

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs; the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application; the terms "including" and "having," and any variations thereof, in the description and claims of this application and the description of the above figures are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions.

In the description of the embodiments of the present application, the technical terms "first", "second", and the like are used only for distinguishing different objects, and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number, specific order, or primary-secondary relationship of the technical features indicated. In the description of the embodiments of the present application, "a plurality" means two or more unless specifically defined otherwise.

Reference herein to "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the application. The appearances of the phrase in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. It is explicitly and implicitly understood by one skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

In the description of the embodiments of the present application, the term "and/or" is only one kind of association relationship describing an associated object, and means that three relationships may exist, for example, a and/or B, and may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. In addition, the character "/" herein generally indicates that the former and latter related objects are in an "or" relationship.

In the description of the embodiments of the present application, the term "plurality" refers to two or more (including two), and similarly, "plural sets" refers to two or more (including two), and "plural pieces" refers to two or more (including two).

In the description of the embodiments of the present application, the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "clockwise", "counterclockwise", "axial", "radial", "circumferential", and the like, indicate the directions or positional relationships indicated in the drawings, and are only for convenience of description of the embodiments of the present application and for simplicity of description, but do not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction, and thus, should not be construed as limiting the embodiments of the present application.

In the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise explicitly stated or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," "fixed," and the like are used in a broad sense, and for example, may be fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrated; mechanical connection or electrical connection is also possible; either directly or indirectly through intervening media, either internally or in any other relationship. The specific meanings of the above terms in the embodiments of the present application can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art according to specific situations.

Current battery cells generally include a case, an end cap, and an electrode assembly accommodated in the case, and an electrolyte is filled in the case. The electrode assembly is a part in which electrochemical reactions occur in the battery cell, the case is an assembly forming the internal environment of the battery cell, and the end cap is a part covering the opening of the case to insulate the internal environment of the battery cell from the external environment. The existing battery cell generally adopts a cooling mode that a cooling plate is arranged at the bottom of the battery cell, and specifically, a heat conduction glue is arranged between the cooling plate and the bottom surface of the battery cell to increase the contact area between the battery cell and the cooling plate. The heat that produces at the free charge-discharge process of battery top-down passes through the heat conduction and glues the transmission for the cooling plate, and the coolant liquid that the inside flow of rethread cooling plate takes away the heat, and then plays the purpose that reduces battery temperature. The inventor of the present application finds that, in the above cooling method, the heat generated by the battery needs to pass through the casing, the heat-conducting glue, the cooling plate and the cooling liquid, and the heat resistance of the heat transfer path is high, thereby affecting the heat transfer efficiency. Specifically, the thermal conductivity of the thermal conductive adhesive is usually only 2-3W/m · K, which is much lower than the thermal conductivity 230W/m · K of metal aluminum (the casing is usually an aluminum casing), and although the thickness of the thermal conductive adhesive is usually very small, about 1mm, the thermal conductivity which is two orders of magnitude lower will cause a great hindrance to the conduction of heat, so that the above-mentioned cooling method has a problem of low heat transfer efficiency, and further, the cooling efficiency of the battery is reduced. In addition, in the above cooling method, the water cooling plate and the heat conductive adhesive occupy the space of the case, and the thickness of the water cooling plate and the heat conductive adhesive affects the overall energy density of the battery.

In view of the above problems, in order to improve the cooling efficiency of the battery, the inventors have proposed that the inner cavity of the case may be partitioned into independent first and second cavities by providing a partition part in the case of the battery, the first cavity being for accommodating the electrode assembly, the second cavity being for forming a flow passage of the coolant, and then sealing-connecting the end cap to the end surface of the partition part to isolate the first and second cavities, preventing the coolant from entering the first cavity, and sealing-connecting the end cap to the case wall to isolate the inner cavity of the case from the outside. Therefore, heat generated by the first cavity can be transferred to the cooling liquid of the second cavity and taken away by the cooling liquid only through the partition part, the heat transfer path is simple, the heat transfer efficiency is high, and the cooling efficiency of the battery is improved. And under the low temperature working condition, when the temperature of the first cavity is lower than that of the second cavity, the cooling liquid of the second cavity can heat the electrode assembly and the electrolyte better.

The battery cell disclosed in the embodiment of the present application can be used in, but not limited to, an electric device for a vehicle, a ship, an aircraft, or the like. A power supply system including the electric device composed of the battery cell, the battery, and the like disclosed in the present application may be used.

The embodiment of the application provides an electric device using a battery as a power supply, wherein the electric device can be but is not limited to a mobile phone, a tablet, a notebook computer, an electric toy, an electric tool, a battery car, an electric automobile, a ship, a spacecraft and the like. The electric toy may include a stationary or mobile electric toy, such as a game machine, an electric car toy, an electric ship toy, an electric airplane toy, and the like, and the spacecraft may include an airplane, a rocket, a space shuttle, a spacecraft, and the like.

For convenience of description, the following embodiments take an example in which a power consuming apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application is a vehicle 1000.

Referring to fig. 1, fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a vehicle 1000 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. The vehicle 1000 may be a fuel automobile, a gas automobile, or a new energy automobile, and the new energy automobile may be a pure electric automobile, a hybrid electric automobile, or a range-extended automobile, etc. The battery 100 is provided inside the vehicle 1000, and the battery 100 may be provided at the bottom or the head or the tail of the vehicle 1000. The battery 100 may be used for power supply of the vehicle 1000, and for example, the battery 100 may serve as an operation power source of the vehicle 1000. The vehicle 1000 may further include a controller 200 and a motor 300, the controller 200 being configured to control the battery 100 to supply power to the motor 300, for example, for power demand for operation when the vehicle 1000 is started, navigated, or driven.

In some embodiments of the present application, the battery 100 may be used not only as an operating power source of the vehicle 1000, but also as a driving power source of the vehicle 1000, instead of or in part of fuel or natural gas, to provide driving power for the vehicle 1000.

Referring to fig. 2, fig. 2 is an exploded view of a battery 100 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. The battery 100 includes a case 10 and a battery cell 20. The battery cell 20 is accommodated in the case 10. The case 10 is used to provide a receiving space for the battery cells 20, and the case 10 may have various structures. In some embodiments, the case 10 may include a first portion 11 and a second portion 12, the first portion 11 and the second portion 12 cover each other, and the first portion 11 and the second portion 12 together define a receiving space for receiving the battery cell 20. The second part 12 may be a hollow structure having one open end, the first part 11 may be a plate-shaped structure, and the first part 11 is covered on the open side of the second part 12 such that the first part 11 and the second part 12 together define a receiving space. The first portion 11 and the second portion 12 may be both hollow structures with one side open, and the open side of the first portion 11 may cover the open side of the second portion 12. Of course, the case 10 formed by the first and second portions 11 and 12 may have various shapes, such as a cylinder, a rectangular parallelepiped, and the like.

In the battery 100, the number of the battery cells 20 may be multiple, and the multiple battery cells 20 may be connected in series or in parallel or in series-parallel, where in series-parallel refers to both series connection and parallel connection among the multiple battery cells 20. The plurality of battery cells 20 can be directly connected in series or in parallel or in series-parallel, and the whole formed by the plurality of battery cells 20 is accommodated in the box body 10; of course, the battery 100 may also be formed by connecting a plurality of battery cells 20 in series, in parallel, or in series-parallel to form a battery module, and then connecting a plurality of battery modules in series, in parallel, or in series-parallel to form a whole, and accommodating the whole in the case 10. The battery 100 may further include other structures, for example, the battery 100 may further include a bus member for achieving electrical connection between the plurality of battery cells 20.

Wherein each battery cell 20 may be a secondary battery or a primary battery; but is not limited to, a lithium sulfur battery, a sodium ion battery, or a magnesium ion battery. The battery cell 20 may be cylindrical, flat, rectangular parallelepiped, or other shapes.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a battery cell 20 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure, and fig. 4 is a schematic exploded view of the battery cell 20 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the battery cell 20 includes an electrode assembly 21, a case 22, an end cap 23, a terminal post 24, and other functional components.

The electrode assembly 21 is a part in which electrochemical reactions occur in the battery cell 20. The electrode assembly 21 is mainly formed by winding or stacking a positive electrode sheet and a negative electrode sheet, and a separator is generally disposed between the positive electrode sheet and the negative electrode sheet. The portions of the positive and negative electrode tabs having the active material constitute the body portions of the electrode assembly, and the portions of the positive and negative electrode tabs having no active material each constitute a tab. In the charging and discharging process of the battery, the anode active substance and the cathode active substance react with the electrolyte, and the tab is connected with the pole to form a current loop.

The case 22 is a component that forms an internal environment of the battery cell 20, which may be used to house the electrode assembly 21, an electrolyte, and other components. One or more electrode assemblies 21 may be contained within the case 22. The material of the housing 22 may be various materials, such as copper, iron, aluminum, stainless steel, aluminum alloy, plastic, etc., which is not limited in the embodiments of the present invention.

The end cap 23 refers to a member that covers an opening of the case 22 to insulate the internal environment of the battery cell 20 from the external environment. Without limitation, the shape of the end cap 23 may be adapted to the shape of the housing 22 to fit the housing 22. Alternatively, the end cap 23 may be made of a material (e.g., an aluminum alloy) with certain hardness and strength, so that the end cap 23 is not easily deformed when being extruded and collided, the single battery 20 can have higher structural strength, the safety performance can be improved, and the end cap 23 may be provided with functional components such as the terminal 24. The terminal post 24 is used to electrically connect with the electrode assembly 21 for outputting or inputting electric energy of the battery cell 20. In some embodiments, the end cap 23 may further include a pressure relief mechanism for relieving the internal pressure when the internal pressure or the temperature of the battery cell 20 reaches a threshold value, and the end cap 23 may also be made of various materials, for example, copper, iron, aluminum, stainless steel, aluminum alloy, plastic, and the like, which is not limited in this embodiment. In some embodiments, insulation may also be provided on the inside of the end cap 23, which may be used to isolate the electrical connection components within the housing 22 from the end cap 23 to reduce the risk of shorting. Illustratively, the insulator may be plastic, rubber, or the like.

Referring to fig. 3 to 6, fig. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a battery cell 20 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 4 is an exploded view of the battery cell 20 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the housing 22 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 6 is a side view of the housing 22 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

The battery cell 20 provided by the embodiment of the present application includes an electrode assembly 21, a case 22, and two end caps 23. Referring to fig. 4 and 5, the housing 22 has two openings oppositely disposed in the first direction X. And the housing 22 includes a housing wall 221 arranged to surround circumferentially and a partition 222 arranged inside the housing wall 221. The partition 222 partitions the inner cavity of the housing 22 into the first chamber 22a and the second chamber 22b independent of each other in the second direction Z. The second direction Z is perpendicular to the first direction X, and the first cavity 22a is for accommodating the electrode assembly 21. The second chamber 22b forms a flow passage of the cooling liquid, and the volume of the first chamber 22a is larger than that of the second chamber 22 b. Two end caps 23 are correspondingly arranged at the two openings. End cap 23 is sealingly connected to housing wall 221 and end cap 23 is sealingly connected to an end face of partition 222.

As shown in fig. 3, the first direction X is a longitudinal direction of the battery cell 20, the second direction Z is a width direction of the battery cell 20, and the third direction Y is a thickness direction of the battery cell 20.

As shown in fig. 5, the housing 22 includes a housing wall 221 arranged to circumferentially surround and a partition 222 arranged inside the housing wall 221. The shell wall 221 includes two first sidewalls perpendicular to and opposite to the third direction Y and two second sidewalls perpendicular to and opposite to the second direction Z. The partition 222 is disposed in parallel with and spaced apart from the second sidewall to partition the inner cavity of the housing 22 into the first chamber 22a and the second chamber 22b, which are independent of each other. In other embodiments not shown in the drawings, a partition may be disposed parallel to the first sidewall at a distance to divide the inner cavity of the housing 22 into a first cavity and a second cavity independent of each other in the third direction Y. The third direction Y is perpendicular to the first direction X. As shown in fig. 5, the partition 222 may be a partition, but in other embodiments not shown in the drawings, the partition may be any other structure that can separate the first chamber 22a from the second chamber 22 b.

As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the end cap 23 is sealingly connected to the housing wall 221 and the end cap 23 is sealingly connected to the end face of the partition 222. The end cap 23 is sealingly connected to the end face of the housing wall 221 such that the end cap 23 simultaneously closes the first and second chambers 22a, 22 b. And the end cover 23 is also connected with the end face of the partition portion 222 in a sealing manner to prevent the cooling liquid from entering the first cavity 22a, and particularly, the end cover 23 and the end face of the partition portion 222 can be connected in a sealing manner by laser penetration welding.

The battery cell 20 of the embodiment of the application divides the inner cavity of the housing 22 into the first cavity and the second cavity which are independent of each other through the partition 222, wherein the first cavity is used for accommodating the electrode assembly, and the second cavity is used for accommodating the cooling liquid, so that the heat generated by the first cavity can be transferred to the cooling liquid of the second cavity and taken away by the cooling liquid only through the partition 222, the heat transfer path is simple, the heat transfer efficiency is high, and the cooling efficiency of the battery is improved. And the first chamber and the second chamber of this application embodiment all seal through end cover 23 for the free integrated level of battery is high, and the assembly is simple.

As shown in fig. 3 and 4, in some embodiments, the end cap 23 is integrally formed. End cap 23 is welded to housing wall 221. And the end cap 23 is hermetically connected to the end face of the partition 222 by laser penetration welding.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 3 and 4, the end cap 23 has a rectangular flat plate structure, and the circumferential edge of the end cap 23 is welded to the housing wall 221. Then, the end surface of the partition 222 is welded to the position of the end cap 23 corresponding to the partition 222 by laser penetration welding. In order to achieve the penetration welding between the end cover 23 and the partition 222 well, the end cover 23 may be provided to be thin at a position corresponding to the partition 222. That is, the end cap 23 includes a body region and an attachment region attached to the divider 222, the attachment region having a thickness less than the thickness of the body region.

The end cover 23 is integrally formed, so that when the end cover 23 is connected to the housing 22, the end cover 23 is welded (for example, laser welding) to the housing wall 221 of the housing 22, and the end cover 23 is welded to the end face of the partition portion 222 by laser penetration welding, so that the end cover 23 and the end face of the partition portion 222 can be hermetically connected, and therefore, the end cover 23 is integrally formed, and the assembly process can be simplified.

Specifically, the end faces of the first cavity and the second cavity are on the same plane. Accordingly, the connection surface of the end cover 23 and the shell 22 is also in the same plane, and the assembly process is further simplified.

In some embodiments, referring to fig. 5 and 6, the housing wall 221 includes two first sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite the third direction Y and two second sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite the second direction Z. The third direction Y is perpendicular to the second direction Z and the first direction X. The area of the second sidewall is smaller than that of the first sidewall, and the partition 222 is parallel to the second sidewall.

As shown in fig. 5, the area of the second sidewall of the casing wall 221 is smaller than that of the first sidewall. That is, the first side wall of the casing wall 221 forms a large face of the battery cell 20, and the second side wall of the casing wall 221 forms a small face of the battery cell 20. The divider 222 is parallel to the facets of the battery cell 20.

The partition 222 is parallel to the second side wall so that the cooling liquid of the second cavity covers the second side wall, and thus when the large faces of the plurality of battery cells 20 are arranged side by side, the second cavity is located at the same end, which is beneficial to uniformly conveying the cooling liquid of the second cavity of the plurality of battery cells 20. And the arrangement makes the area of the partition part between the first cavity and the second cavity smaller, and the separation between the two cavities is easier to realize.

In the embodiment shown in fig. 5 in particular, the distance between the partition 222 and one of the two second side walls is greater than the distance between the partition 222 and the other second side wall, so that the volume of the first cavity is greater than the volume of the second cavity, that is, although the cooling liquid channel of the embodiment of the present application is formed in the housing 22, the volume occupied by the cooling liquid channel is small.

As can be seen from the above description, the end cover 23 needs to be in sealing connection with the end face of the partition portion 222 to prevent the coolant in the second chamber from entering the first chamber, and in order to effectively ensure a good sealing connection between the end cover 23 and the end face of the partition portion 222, in some embodiments, referring to fig. 5 and 6, the thickness of the partition portion 222 is greater than that of the casing wall 221.

The thickness of the partition portion 222 is greater than that of the housing wall 221, and the connection area between the partition portion 222 and the end cap 23 may be increased to ensure the isolation of the first chamber from the second chamber.

Specifically, in order to simultaneously achieve both energy density and mechanical strength of the case itself, as shown in fig. 6, the thickness of the first side wall 2211 of the case wall 221 is in the range of 0.2mm to 2.0mm, and preferably, the thickness of the first side wall 2211 is in the range of 0.5mm to 1.0 mm. The thickness of the second side wall 2212 of the two second side walls 2212 forming the first cavity (i.e., the second side wall 2212 away from the partition 222) ranges from 0.2mm to 2.0mm, and preferably, the thickness of the second side wall 2212 away from the partition 222 ranges from 0.5mm to 1.0 mm. The thickness of the second side wall 2212 of the two second side walls 2212 forming the second cavity (i.e., the second side wall 2212 near the partition 222) ranges from 0.5mm to 5mm, and preferably, the thickness of the second side wall 2212 near the partition 222 ranges from 1.0mm to 2.0 mm. The thickness of the partition 222 ranges from 0.5mm to 5 mm. Preferably, the thickness of the partition 222 ranges from 1.0mm to 3.0 mm.

Referring to fig. 5 and 6, in some embodiments, the housing 22 is integrally formed.

As shown in fig. 5, the case 22 is a square through-shaped aluminum case, and is integrally formed by an aluminum extrusion or drawing process, so that the inner cavity of the case 22 is divided into a first larger cavity for accommodating the electrode assembly and supplying power to the battery and a second smaller cavity for providing a coolant flow path for cooling or heating the battery. The housing wall 221 and the partition 222 are made of the same material, for example, metal, so that the partition 222 provides metal isolation between the first and second chambers, preventing the coolant from entering the first chamber.

As shown in fig. 5, the length of the housing 22 in the first direction X ranges from 100mm to 2000mm, and more preferably ranges from 200mm to 600 mm. The width of the case 22 in the second direction Z ranges from 50mm to 300mm, and more preferably ranges from 80mm to 120 mm. The thickness of the case 22 in the third direction Y is in a range of 10mm to 100mm, and more preferably in a range of 20mm to 60 mm.

The case 22 is integrally formed, which simplifies the manufacturing process of the battery 20.

Of course, in other embodiments, the wall 221 of the housing 22 may be integrally formed, and then the partition 222 may be connected to the wall 221 by welding or the like.

As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the battery cell 20 includes two end caps 23 and two poles 24 respectively disposed on the two end caps 23. The electrode assembly 21 includes a body portion 211 and two tabs 212 of opposite polarities protruding from the body portion 211. The two tabs 212 respectively extend toward the two openings and are electrically connected to the corresponding poles 24.

The electrode assembly 21 may be formed by winding or lamination. Two tabs 212 having opposite polarities are respectively protruded from both ends of the electrode assembly 21. The tab 212 is electrically connected to the corresponding pole 24. The tab 212 and the post 24 may be directly joined by welding (e.g., laser welding). In other embodiments, for example, the tabs of the electrode assembly extend from one side of the main body in the second direction Z, and the tabs and the poles can be connected by the adapter sheet, for example, one end of the adapter sheet is ultrasonically welded to the tabs, and the other end of the adapter sheet is laser welded to the poles.

The two poles 24 are respectively disposed at two ends of the battery cells 20, so that the connection between the battery cells 20 is facilitated.

Of course in other embodiments, and certainly in other embodiments, as shown in fig. 8, the battery cell 20 further includes two poles 24 disposed on one of the two end caps 23. The electrode assembly 21 includes a body portion 211 and two tabs 212 of opposite polarities protruding from the body portion 211 toward the two electrode posts 24, and the two tabs 212 are electrically connected to the two electrode posts 24.

Referring to fig. 8, the two poles 24 are both disposed at the same end of the battery cell 20, and at this time, one of the two end covers 23 is disposed with the two poles 24, and the other end cover 23 is not disposed with the poles.

Two utmost point posts 24 all set up the same one end at battery monomer 20, so battery monomer 20's other sides all can set up side by side each other, and battery monomer 20 with set up the opposite one end of utmost point post 24 can directly form with the contact surface of box 10, and then make things convenient for the arrangement of a plurality of battery monomer 20 in box 10.

Referring to fig. 4, the two end caps 23 include a first end cap and a second end cap. A coolant inlet pipe 25 for feeding coolant to the second chamber is provided on the first end cap, and a coolant outlet pipe 26 for discharging coolant from the second chamber is provided on the second end cap.

The coolant inlet pipe 25 is connected to an external coolant inlet manifold for feeding the coolant to the second chamber, and the coolant outlet pipe 26 is connected to an external coolant outlet manifold for discharging the coolant of the second chamber to the outside. The coolant inlet pipe 25 may be integrally formed on the first end cap, and the coolant outlet pipe 26 may be integrally formed on the second end cap.

The cooling liquid input pipe 25 and the cooling liquid output pipe 26 are respectively arranged on the two end covers 23 to realize the circulating flow of the cooling liquid in the second cavity, and the cooling effect is improved.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 4, the first end cap is further provided with a liquid injection hole 27 for injecting the electrolyte into the first chamber.

When a plurality of battery cells 20 are arranged side by side, if the coolant inlet pipe 25 or the coolant outlet pipe 26 is a metal pipe, the cases of the plurality of battery cells 20 are connected by the coolant inlet pipe 25 or the coolant outlet pipe 26 to form an equipotential body, which causes a problem of electrolytic corrosion. In view of the above, the coolant input pipe 25 and the coolant output pipe 26 are provided as insulating pipes.

The cooling liquid input pipe 25 and the cooling liquid output pipe 26 of each battery cell 20 are made of insulating materials, so that the problem of electrolytic corrosion caused by the fact that the shells of a plurality of battery cells form an equipotential body through a cooling pipeline is avoided.

In some embodiments, in order to ensure the sealing reliability between the first cavity 22a and the second cavity 22b, the end cap 23 is split into an upper part and a lower part, which are respectively welded to the end of the housing 22. Referring to fig. 7, the end cap 23 includes a first end cap division body 231 for closing the first chamber 22a and a second end cap division body 232 for closing the second chamber 22 b. The first end cap separation body 231 is welded to the end surface of the first cavity 22 a. The second end cap split 232 is welded to an end face of the second cavity 22 b. And the first end cap division body 231, the second end cap division body 232 and the partition portion 222 are connected by adhesive glue.

As shown in fig. 7, the cap 23 includes a first cap division body 231 and a second cap division body 232 which are separately provided. When assembling the battery cell 20, the first end cap split 231 is welded to the end surface of the first cavity 22a of the housing 22, specifically, the first end cap split 231 is welded to the end surface of the upper portion of the housing wall 221 and the end surface of the partition portion 222; then, the second end cap split body 232 is welded to the end face of the second cavity 22b of the housing 22, specifically, the second end cap split body 232 is welded to the lower end face of the housing wall 221 and the end face of the partition portion 222, and finally, after the two welding steps are performed, the gaps between the lower surface of the first end cap split body 231, the upper surface of the second end cap split body 232 and the end face of the partition portion 222 are sealed by using adhesive (for example, by dropping glue).

The end cover 23 is divided into an upper part and a lower part, and the two parts and the partition part are sealed again after the two parts are respectively welded with the end face of the shell 22, so that the sealing reliability between the first cavity 22a and the second cavity 22b can be further ensured.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 9, the housing 22 includes two partitions 222 disposed in parallel in the housing wall 221. The two partitions 222 partition the inner cavity of the housing 22 into a first chamber and two second chambers provided on both sides of the first chamber, which are independent of each other.

The arrangement is such that the coolant flows through both sides of the first cavity for housing the electrode assembly 21, and the cooling efficiency can be further improved.

The embodiment of the present application further provides a battery, which includes the battery cell 20.

In some embodiments, referring to fig. 10, the battery includes at least two battery cells 20, a coolant input header 30, and a coolant output header 40, arranged side-by-side. The two ends of the second cavities of the at least two battery cells 20 are respectively in fluid communication with the cooling liquid input main pipe 30 and the cooling liquid output main pipe 40, and the cooling liquid input main pipe 30 and/or the cooling liquid output main pipe 40 are insulating pipes.

The plurality of battery cells 20 are arranged in parallel, and the second chamber of each battery cell 20 is connected to the coolant input main pipe 30 and the coolant output main pipe 40 through a transfer pipe or directly. The cooling liquid flows into the bottom of each battery cell 20 from the inlet of the cooling liquid input main pipe 30, cools the battery cells 20, flows out from the other end, and flows out from the cooling liquid output main pipe 40 at the other end after being converged. Considering that the cases of the plurality of batteries are connected by the metal pipes, there is a problem of electrolytic corrosion, and the coolant input main pipe 30 and the coolant output main pipe 40 should be made of an insulating material to prevent the cases of the plurality of batteries from forming equipotential bodies by the cooling pipes.

The embodiment of the application also provides an electric device which comprises the battery, and the battery is used for providing electric energy.

Referring to fig. 11, a method for manufacturing a battery cell according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes the following steps:

s501, providing an electrode assembly 21;

s502, providing a case 22, where the case 22 has two openings oppositely arranged in a first direction X, and the case 22 includes a casing wall 221 arranged to circumferentially surround and a partition 222 arranged in the casing wall 221, where the partition 222 partitions an inner cavity of the case 22 into a first cavity 22a and a second cavity 22b which are independent of each other in a second direction Z, the second direction Z is perpendicular to the first direction X, the first cavity 22a is used for accommodating the electrode assembly 21, and the second cavity 22b forms a flow channel of a cooling liquid; and

s503, providing two end caps 23, disposing the two end caps 23 at the two openings, and hermetically connecting the end caps 23 to the shell wall 221 and the end faces of the partition portion 222.

In the manufacturing method of the single battery in the embodiment of the application, the inner cavity of the housing 22 is divided into the first cavity and the second cavity which are independent of each other by the dividing part 222, wherein the first cavity is used for accommodating the electrode assembly, and the second cavity is used for accommodating the cooling liquid, so that the heat generated by the first cavity can be transmitted to the cooling liquid of the second cavity and taken away by the cooling liquid only through the dividing part 222, the heat transfer path is simple, the heat transfer efficiency is high, and the cooling efficiency of the battery is improved. And the first chamber and the second chamber of this application embodiment all seal through end cover 23 for the free integrated level of battery is high, and the assembly is simple.

While the application has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment, various modifications may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the application. In particular, the technical features mentioned in the embodiments can be combined in any way as long as there is no structural conflict. The present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed herein but is to cover all embodiments that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (14)

1. A battery cell, comprising:

an electrode assembly (21);

a case (22) having two openings oppositely arranged in a first direction (X), wherein the case (22) includes a case wall (221) arranged to circumferentially surround and a partition portion (222) arranged in the case wall (221), the partition portion (222) divides an inner cavity of the case (22) into a first cavity (22a) and a second cavity (22b) which are independent of each other in a second direction (Z), the second direction (Z) is perpendicular to the first direction (X), the first cavity (22a) is used for accommodating the electrode assembly (21), the second cavity (22b) forms a flow passage of a cooling liquid, and the volume of the first cavity (22a) is larger than that of the second cavity (22 b); and

two end covers (23) are correspondingly arranged at the two openings, the end covers (23) are connected with the shell wall (221) in a sealing mode, and the end covers (23) are connected with the end face of the partition part (222) in a sealing mode.

2. The battery cell according to claim 1, wherein the end cap (23) is integrally formed, the end cap (23) is welded to the housing wall (221), and the end cap (23) and the end face of the partition (222) are hermetically connected by laser penetration welding.

3. The battery cell according to claim 1, wherein the end cap (23) includes a first end cap split body (231) for closing the first cavity (22a) and a second end cap split body (232) for closing the second cavity (22b), the first end cap split body (231) is welded to an end surface of the first cavity (22a), the second end cap split body (232) is welded to an end surface of the second cavity (22b), and the first end cap split body (231), the second end cap split body (232) and the partition portion (222) are connected by an adhesive glue.

4. The battery cell according to claim 1, wherein the housing wall (221) includes two first sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite to a third direction (Y) perpendicular to the second direction (Z) and the first direction (X), and two second sidewalls disposed perpendicular to and opposite to the second direction (Z), the second sidewalls having an area smaller than that of the first sidewalls, the partition portion (222) being parallel to the second sidewalls.

5. The battery cell according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of the partition (222) is greater than the thickness of the housing wall (221).

6. The battery cell according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the housing (22) comprises two partitions (222) disposed in parallel within the housing wall (221), the two partitions (222) dividing an inner cavity of the housing (22) into a first cavity independent of each other and two second cavities disposed on both sides of the first cavity.

7. The battery cell according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the two end caps (23) comprise a first end cap and a second end cap, the first end cap is provided with a cooling fluid input pipe (25) for inputting cooling fluid into the second cavity, and the second end cap is provided with a cooling fluid output pipe (26) for outputting cooling fluid from the second cavity.

8. The battery cell according to claim 7, wherein the coolant inlet pipe (25) and/or the coolant outlet pipe (26) is an insulating pipe.

9. The battery cell according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising two poles (24) respectively disposed on the two end caps (23), the electrode assembly (21) comprising a main body portion (211) and two tabs (212) of opposite polarity protruding from the main body portion (211), the two tabs (212) respectively protruding toward the two openings and electrically connected with the corresponding poles (24).

10. The battery cell according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the battery cell further comprises two poles arranged on one end cover (23) of the two end covers (23), the electrode assembly (21) comprises a main body part (211) and two tabs (212) with opposite polarities protruding from the main body part (211) to one side of the two poles, and the two tabs (212) are correspondingly electrically connected with the two poles (24).

11. The battery cell according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the housing (22) is integrally formed.

12. A battery, comprising: the battery cell (20) of any of claims 1 to 11.

13. The battery according to claim 12, comprising at least two of the battery cells (20), the coolant input main pipe (30) and the coolant output main pipe (40) arranged side by side, wherein two ends of a second cavity of the at least two battery cells are respectively in fluid communication with the coolant input main pipe (30) and the coolant output main pipe (40), and the coolant input main pipe (30) and/or the coolant output main pipe (40) are insulating pipes.

14. An electrical device comprising a battery as claimed in claim 12 or 13 for providing electrical energy.

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